


Sick

by Shadow_Wolfhawk



Series: Slice of After-Life one-shot series [1]
Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Gen, fluffy one-shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 13:59:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12483248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadow_Wolfhawk/pseuds/Shadow_Wolfhawk
Summary: Brought over from my Tumblr page;  One-Shot from my “Slice of After-Life” series. When Grelle comes home from an evening out, she finds her beloved William terribly ill. What is a lady to do? Nurse her man back to health of course! ^_^





	Sick

**_Sick_ (a Grelliam fic) by Shadow Wolfhawk**   
**Fandom: Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji)**   
**Pairing: Grelliam (Grelle Sutcliff/William T. Spears)**   
  


 

 

Perhaps those last five shots were a mistake; she would definitely regret them in the morning. Stepping off of the elevator, she paused as her head began to swim. William just _had_ to live on the top floor of an eighteen-floor building... Once her brain cleared, she unlocked the door to the penthouse suite and walked inside.

  
It had been a few weeks now since she had been kicked out of her old apartment by her jerk of a landlord. William had been kind enough to let her move in with him until she found another place, but if she was honest, she was not looking that hard. She had been over the moon when he had made the offer - it was a dream come true! Now, she was no freeloader, she’ll have you know. She was paying her fair share of the bills and helping out with the cleaning – most of the time, anyway. William had a tendency to beat her to it, seeing as he was a bit of a neat-freak.

  
Speaking of William – she had not seen him since lunch time today. He should be home by now, unless he had gotten roped into doing more overtime. Her poor darling always worked so hard. She was making an honest attempt to make his work load easier by getting her paperwork finished and in on time. It had gotten better in the last two months, but it was still challenging. She hated paperwork – it was so boring! She had no idea how William kept his sanity, day after day.   
Locking the door behind her, she set her purse down on the table by the door, tossing her keys into the dish and saw that William’s keys were in there already. He must be home! Humming softly to herself, she walked into the living room, finding it was dark. The heavy black curtains were closed, and the only light was coming from the kitchen. She checked her watch – it wasn’t that late. William was usually still up by this time.

  
A small meow drew her attention to the couch. Her precious Somali jumped down from his perch and trotted over to her, the silver bell on his red color tinkling with each step. He rubbed against her ankles, welcoming her home with a soft purr.  
She knelt down to stroke his tiny body, giving him an affectionate scratch behind his ears. “Hello, Cheshire, darling. Mummy missed you, too.” Cheshire mewed again and scampered back to the couch. He jumped up onto the back and looked back at her. He meowed, as though to call her over. “What is it, sweetie?”

  
She walked over to the couch to see what the cat was trying to show her. Peering down in the dim light, she could just make out William curled up under the blanket usually draped over the chair. His glasses were on the coffee table, sitting beside a bottle of medicine, a half empty water glass and a plate holding what appeared to be the remains of cinnamon toast. Perched beside William’s head on the arm of the couch was his own pet. The floppy-eared lagomorph’s nose twitched wildly against his master’s head. The hare looked up when Grelle and Cheshire approached and the red reaper noticed the worry in his large brown eyes.

  
William must not be feeling well. The thought suddenly made her feel giddy. OH! – she could play nurse! She could lavish him with all sorts of affection and help him feel better. It was a perfect romantic scenario!

  
“Will?” She reached down to feel his forehead and was alarmed by how warm it was. She walked around to the front of the couch and knelt down beside him. “William?” she called, softly, brushing his sweaty bangs back from his forehead.

  
She saw him wince as his eyes slowly opened. “G-Grelle...?” He had never sounded so weak and it startled her.

  
“I’m here, darling,” she said. “What’s the matter?”

  
“My head…” he whimpered, pulling the blanket tighter around him.

  
All of the glee she felt a moment earlier, suddenly vanished and was replaced with worry. _‘That’s not good.’_

  
“Are you having one of your migraines?”

  
“Yes…” His voice was barely audible.

  
Grelle knew William’s migraines were no light matter. The last one had kept him home for three days. He had headaches all the time – almost every other day – and she had always thought it was because his job was always stressing him out. It was not until recently that she learned that was not entirely the case.

  
She gently touched the back of his head, stroking over the hair that covered the scar from the exit wound. ‘My poor darling.’

  
“What can I do, Will?” She looked at the medicine bottle on the table. “I presume you took some medicine?” He whimpered a response. “How long ago?”

  
“A-at lunch…”

  
That was nearly ten hours ago, but the bottle and food were sitting on the table and seemed to have been there for only a few hours, judging by the condition of the toast. “Are you sure it was at lunch time? You didn’t take it when you got home?” Will was quiet for a long moment. Ever so slightly, he nodded. “You did take it when you got home?” Another small nod. The poor darling must have been so disoriented. Grelle stood and took the plate and glass into the kitchen. She took out her phone and dialed one of her contacts while filling the glass with fresh water. She was not sure what to do to help her beloved, but she knew exactly who did.

  
_“Hi, Grelle. What’s up?”_

  
“Hi, Vera – got a question for you. Will’s having another one of his headaches and it seems to be pretty bad. Do you know if he took any medicine for it?”

  
Veronica Sylvan was William’s personal secretary and the great-granddaughter of his childhood best friend. Ironic that the poor girl would follow her adopted uncle to the Reaper realm. She had plenty of experience, though, in treating William’s headaches.

  
_“Yeah. He took it around four o’clock – it was right before I left. He got sick at work and I had to bring him home early. Has he gotten worse?”_

  
“He has the curtains closed and the lights off and he’s barely able to talk… I’ve never seen him so weak before.” Her voice shook and she stifled a sniff.

  
_“He’s going to be ok, honey. He’s too stubborn to let it keep him down for very long.”_

  
Grelle sighed, placing the water glass down on the table and kneeling beside William once more. “I know, I know. It’s just – I hate seeing him like this. Weak and vulnerable just isn’t my Will.” She took a breath to calm herself. William needed her to be focused. “Thank you, dear. Any suggestions for me? When is he going to be able to take his medicine again?”

  
_“Start brewing coffee. You’re both going to need it. He won’t be able to take his medicine again until around midnight, but coffee usually helps keep the pain down. And make sure he eats. He tends to skip meals when he has a headache.”_

“Alright. I’ll let him sleep for little bit yet before I try. Poor dear is so tired.”

  
_“Ok. Give me a call if you need anything.”_

  
“Thanks, dearie. Don’t let Ronald keep you out too late. William will have his head.”

  
_“Shh! Don’t tell him. You know how over protective he gets.”_

  
The two women shared a giggle before they hung up and Grelle set her phone down, returning her attention to William. She gently stroked his bangs, lightly twirling the locks between her fingers. Leaning forward, she softly touched her lips to his warm forehead and he shifted under the motion. His eyes cracked open and struggled to stay that way.

  
“Grelle?”

  
“I’m here, Will. Do you want some water?” A whimper told her yes and she held the glass to his lips as he slowly sipped from it. When he settled back down, she put the glass back on the table. “I’m going to put on some coffee. I’ll be right back, alight?” Another whimper. “Do you want some more toast?”

  
“No… thank you…”

  
She left another kiss on his head before going to the kitchen. After putting the coffee on, she took one of the pots down from the rack over the stove, trying to keep them from banging around and agitating William’s headache. She filled the pot with water and set it on the stove to boil before setting to chopping up some vegetables and chicken. After throwing them in with some bouillon, she left it to simmer while she took down two coffee mugs from the cabinet. Grelle took the steaming mugs into the living room, setting them down on the table.

  
William stirred at the scent and tried to sit up, only to find his limbs weak and his head too sore for such an action.

  
“Easy, now, Will,” Grelle said, gently. She slipped an arm under his shoulders, the base of his head cradled in the crook of her elbow, and helped raise him up slowly. She handed him his black mug and he sipped, cautiously. “Do you want one of your pillows? It might be better than the throw pillow.”

  
William was silent for a minute, looking as though he was not quite sure what she had just asked, before nodding. Grelle stood and went to William’s bedroom down the hall. She was briefly surprised by the bedding choice – the last time she had been in his room, there was a gray coverlet with white sheets and black pillow cases. Now they had been replaced by a dark red comforter with gold embroidery and rich purple sheets with matching pillow cases. She felt compelled to snoop around and see what else he had changed in there, but quickly shrugged it off. Her poor darling needed her. She grabbed one of the pillows and returned to the living room, placing it on the couch.

  
“New bedding?” she queried.

  
William faintly shook his head in the negative. “No. I usually change it to those in the fall and winter months. They’re warmer..”

  
“Oh.” She looked at the crocheted blanket around his shoulders, which sported a similar color scheme. He seemed to notice her lingering stare and clutched the piece, tightly, almost protectively. “What is it, darling?”

  
“Nothing,” he mumbled.

  
The elder reaper readjusted the blanket around himself and set his cup back on the table. He slowly laid back down and burrowed into the tightly woven yarn. Grelle smiled, lightly, at how cute her strict boss looked at the moment, curled up under the blanket and visible from only the nose up.

  
“Are you cold, Will?” she asked.

  
“No.” His voice was muffled behind the fabric.

  
She reached out to stroke his hair. “I’m going to go check on dinner. I’ll be right back.” She went back to the kitchen and stirred the soup in the pot, lowering the heat as she did so. It still had a while to go yet. She topped off her coffee and returned to William’s side. Sitting down on the coffee table in front of him, she wondered about what to say. Riding out one of William’s migraines was a long process, especially if his medicine was not helping. Turning on the phonograph was out as music would probably only hurt his head even more and she doubted that he was coherent enough to play a board game or put together a jigsaw puzzle. It was certainly going to be a boring evening. “Is there anything you would like me to get you? Dinner won’t be ready for another hour.”

  
“No, thank you, Grelle…” William was beginning to sound sleepy again.

  
“How about a few more sips of coffee? And then you can try and take a nap.”

  
He nodded and she held the mug to his lips for him to take a few quick sips. He then settled back into his blanket, pulling it up over his head like a hood. Grelle watched as the hare jumped down from the arm of the couch and burrowed his way into his master’s arms, snuggling with him under the blanket. She felt a twinge of jealousy towards the rodent again, as she did every time William cuddled him so readily. Cheshire hopped up onto the table beside her and rubbed against her thigh, demanding attention, which she happily obliged him. The two watched their companions’ eyes slip shut as they drifted off to sleep, March’s nose still twitching a mile-a-minute.

  
“I guess it’s just you and me for now, my precious,” Grelle said, stroking Cheshire’s back.

  
“Mrrw…” Cheshire purred, pushing up into her hand. After a few minutes, Grelle stood up and went to the kitchen to refill her coffee. The feline was not pleased by this. “MEOW!!!”

  
“Shhh!!” She hissed at the cat. “Not so loud, darling. You don’t want to wake Daddy.” The Somali shook his head in annoyance, but followed her to the kitchen anyway. She placed a saucer of milk on the counter for him, which he lapped up, greedily. “Will that satisfy, Your Majesty?” she asked with a chuckle. The cat flicked his fluffy tail as though to dismiss her. “Brat.” She heard a terse growl, seeming to be a retort, and shook her head.

  
Leaning over the counter, she sipped her coffee as she gazed at her sleeping love on the sofa. She played with the red mug in her hands, her finger tracing over the white skull-and-cross-bones on the black label.

  
Her poor William… She wished that there was something she could do to make his head stop hurting. Unfortunately – as he had told her after the last one – they were something he was going to have to suffer with until the day he was forgiven.

  
The hour passed, slowly, but finally the soup was ready. Grelle ladled the steaming liquid into two bowls and carried them into the living room on a tray, along with a plate of bread and butter. She set the tray on the table and turned to William. He was still sleeping and looked so peaceful that she felt terrible for needing to wake him. She crouched beside and placed a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him.

  
“Will? Will, darling, wake up.” He groaned and shifted under the blanket, cracking an eye open to look at her. “Dinner is ready, dear.” He shook his head and closed his eyes again, clearly wanting to go back to sleep. “Please, Will? You haven’t eaten since early this afternoon.” He pulled the blanket tighter around him, trying to hide his face in an attempt to ignore her. “Darling, please? Just a bowl or two of soup and then you can go back to sleep.”

  
His bleary eyes opened again and, even without his glasses, he could see that she would not relent. He shifted to a sitting position, startling March awake who then hopped down to the floor and under the couch, unsure of what was happening. He crawled back out when his master slid down to the floor and sat beside him as he inched up to the table. William adjusted the blanket around himself as Grelle placed a bowl in front of him with a slice of bread.

  
“Thank you, Grelle,” he muttered, sleepily.

  
He was clearly hungrier than he had realized and quickly downed the bowl and three slices of bread. Grelle poured him some more, which he ate a little more slowly this time. After two more slices of bread and another half a bowl, he decided that he was full and leaned back against the couch.

  
“Had enough, dear?” the younger reaper asked. He nodded. Seeing the hour, she asked, “Do you want to head off to bed? Or would you rather sleep out here tonight?”

  
“I think I’ll go back to my room.” He struggled to stand and Grelle helped him to his feet. Picking up his pillow as they went by, she steadied him back to his bedroom and helped him into bed. “I left my glasses on the table…”

  
“I’ll bring them in after I clean up,” Grelle assured him, smoothing out his blankets as she pulled them up over his body. “They’ll be next to your alarm clock when you wake up. You just go back to sleep.”

  
He did not like the idea of his glasses being so far away from his grasp, but agreed, too tired to do much else. “Will you wake me up in a few hours, so I can take my medicine again?”

  
“Of course, darling.” She leaned over and kissed his forehead, glad at feeling that it was not as warm as before.

  
She straightened up and picked up the crocheted blanket. As she began to fold it and take it back out to the living room, William let out a small whimper and grabbed the edge of it.

  
“No… leave it here.” He sounded desperate for it, so she draped it back over him.

  
“What’s wrong, Will?” He had been clutching that blanket like a lifeline all night. She felt a bit of jealousy again – why couldn’t he clutch her like that?

  
“Nothing…” he said, quietly, bringing it up to his shoulders and wrapping himself in it again. “Just… it helps me feel better.”

  
“Oh?”

  
“Mama made it for me when I was young… Whenever I was ill, she would wrap me in it.”

  
Grelle felt tears stinging her eyes. William never talked about his parents. It seemed that was the only snippet she was going to hear as William had drifted off in the next moment. She reached down and stroked his hair.   
March and Cheshire bounded into the room and jumped up onto the bed. The hare hopped over to his master and snuggled down beside him once more as the feline crawled up onto the pillows, curling beside William’s head, his tail curling over the man’s neck. His purr was loud, but it did not seem to bother the sleeping reaper.

  
“You two keep Will warm. I’ll be right back.”

  
The redhead went back out to living room and cleaned up the dinner dishes, putting the left-over soup in the ice box. She debated with herself over whether or not to wash the dishes in the sink or leave them until morning. It was late and she was getting tired.

  
‘I’ll take care of it when I get up tomorrow.’

  
She went down the hall to her own room, across from William’s and gathered her night clothes, looking in on him and leaving his glasses and medicine on the night table, before going in to take a warm shower. Washing out her long mane seemed to take hours, but the light rosy scent that replaced the lingering smell of blood and booze from her long day was worth the effort. She scrubbed off her make-up next, revealing the light dusting of freckles across her nose and cheeks. Such was the curse of having red hair… They were far more visible when she was a child, which gained her quite a bit of teasing from other children and she was thankful when they began to fade with each passing year. The ones on her shoulders were still quite visible, but those never bothered her as much as they were hidden more easily. It was only when she wore a gown with low sleeves that she needed to worry about them.

  
Feeling clean and refreshed, she stepped from the shower and toweled off, drying her long hair as best she could before brushing it out and braiding it for the night. She felt a slight draft and dressed quickly. It was too cold for one of her skimpy night dresses, so she put on a pair of cotton pants and a cut-off shirt, revealing her pierced belly button. She giggled to herself, remembering the first time she had shown the piercing to Will – his expression had been so adorable! His lips had parted, slightly while a dusting of pink appeared on his cheeks, his browed furrowed in mild confusion as his eyes tried to discern just what they were seeing.

  
_“… Why?”_ was all he had been able to say.

  
She had chuckled and pointed to three barely noticeable marks on his left ear. _“I could ask you the same, darling.”_

_“Whatever,”_ he had shrugged, before going back to his paperwork.

  
Grelle walked into William’s room, finding him still asleep with the animals cuddled against him. It was such a cute picture – she wished she had a camera. She padded over to the bed and sat down. The elder reaper stirred at the shifting mattress and allowed his eyes to flutter open. The redhead ran her manicured fingers through his hair, twirling and toying with the brunette locks.

  
“It’s nearly midnight, Will,” she informed him, softly. “Do you want to take your medicine now?”

  
He nodded and she went to get him a glass of water from his private bathroom. She brought it back to him and watched as his shaky hands removed the lid from the bottle and dumped out two capsules. He popped them into his mouth and chased them down quickly with a drink of water, shivering slightly at their bitter aftertaste. He finished the water and placed the glass on the table. He settled back down again, grimacing as the motion made his head throb. The redhead switched out the lights, leaving on the light in the bathroom. Seeing William’s pained expression, she got an idea that made her heart speed up. She returned to the bed and crawled up beside him.

  
“Grelle? What are you doing?”

  
“Shhh… Just relax, Will,” the younger one said. She gently lifted his head, moving his pillow with him, and laid him in her lap. He jolted a bit at this awkward arrangement, looking up the dark blur of red as though she were mad. She placed her red fingertips to his temples, using the lightest pressure as not to hurt him, and began to slowly move them in a circular motion. She reached her thumbs to the base of his skull and began doing the same. William was beginning to protest, but was soon lulled into submission by the gentle ministrations. “How’s that, darling? Feel better?” She was answered by a contented, sleepy grunt and smiled. “Shhh… sleep now, my love. You need to rest. I need my cold, strict boss back at work as soon as possible. He needs to keep his favorite, troublesome reaper in line.”

 

“Knox isn’t doing that horribly…” he muttered.

  
“Hey!” She saw his tired smirk and refrained from smacking his arm. “Cruel man,” she giggled.

  
They sat in silence, Grelle continuing to massage the brunette’s head as he was slowly dragged into the arms of Morpheus. The redhead leaned down and kissed his forehead once more, before leaning back against the headboard and following him off to sleep.

 

_**~ END ~** _


End file.
